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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on protests led by students which led to her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the unrest in the previous year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and wounded had demanded tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was content of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection prior to the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative Jisanul Haque stated to news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 commenced through demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by investigative sources in previous months suggested she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the vote.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am disappointed," he added.

The previous week, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "Both she and the organization has apologised or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not finality for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he said.